Computer Usage and Copyrights

The ��˾�������� requires that all network and system users abide by applicable laws and respect the copyrights and intellectual property of others.  The Acceptable Usage Standards of Computing and Communication Technology states:

Users shall respect the proprietary rights of software and documentation.

Discussion - Computer software, documents or files protected by copyright are not to be copied from or into computing facilities, except as permitted by license or law. Additionally, the number of copies and the distribution of copies must adhere to copyright restrictions and/or provisions. Further, type written or machine-readable documents protected by copyright are not to be reproduced or copied, unless permitted by the copyright owner or legally accepted “fair use”.

The University’s Procedure For Responding To Allegations of On-Line Infringement of Copyright

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) limits the liability of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for certain copyright infringements.  Under the definition set forth in the DMCA the ��˾�������� qualifies as an ISP.  In the case of an on-line copyright allegation, if the university is a content-neutral ISP or if the university has no editorial responsibility or control over the infringing content, the university may choose to take advantage of the ISP liability limitation included under the DMCA and respond to the allegation in accordance with the procedures described in the DMCA.

The DMCA requires that the university designate and agent to receive claims of copyright infringement.  Accordingly, all claims of copyright infringement should be sent to:

��˾��������
Information Technology Services
101 Vera King Ferris Drive
Galloway, NJ 08205-9441
Phone Number: (609) 652-4335
Email Address: abuse@stockton.edu

DMCA procedures for responding to a copyright allegation:

• Determine whether the university can and wishes to take advantage of the ISP liability limitation or whether to handle the complaint in another way. 
• If a college or university qualifies for the DMCA process and chooses to follow the law’s procedures, it must respond to the notice by giving notice to the owner of the page.  This includes:
  1. Evaluate the notice to be sure it substantially conforms to the statutory requirements. These requirements include:
     • Physical or digital signature of the owner of the copyright or the owner’s authorized agent;
     • Description of the works claimed to be infringed;
     • Description of the allegedly infringing works, sufficient to enable the agent to find them;
     • Sufficient information to enable the agent to contact the complainer;
     •  A good faith statement that the use of the material is not authorized;
     • A statement attesting to the accuracy of the information, and under penalty of perjury, that the complainer is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright.
  2. If the notice substantially conforms to the above, the university must notify the page owner of the allegation of infringement and secure voluntary take down of the work or disable access.   If the notice does not substantially conform, the university should return the notice to the complainer and attempt to obtain the necessary information.  If after attempting to obtain the necessary information the complainer does not respond, the university may ignore the notice.
  3. After the page/file owner voluntarily takes down the page/file or the university disables access to the page/file, a page owner may file a counter-notice asserting that the claim of infringement is mistaken or the work has been misidentified.  A counter-notice must contain the following:
     • A physical or digital signature of the page/file owner;
     • A description of the material removed and its location before it was removed;
     • A statement that the page owner believes in good faith that the material was removed by mistake or because it was misidentified;
     • The page owner’s name, address and phone number and his or her consent to jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for that address;
     • A statement that the page owner will accept service of process from the complainer.
     
     The university will not be liable to the owner of the page for any harm he or she might suffer because of our actions in disabling access to a page so long as we:
     • Take reasonable steps to notify the page owner about the allegations in a conforming notice that we have received;
     • Promptly send a copy of any substantially conforming counter-notice to the complainer indicating that we will restore access in 10 business days; and 
     • Restore access to the allegedly infringing work within 10 to 14 business days after the day we receive the counter-notice, unless we first receive a notice from the complainer that he or she has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the page owner.  If the university receives notice that the complainer has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the page/file owner, the university must not make the page/file accessible.  It must forward the notice to the page/file owner and to the appropriate authority on campus.

Sanctions For Copyright Infringement

After being given notice by the university, if the infringing page/file is not voluntarily taken down by the infringing party within 7 business days, the university will disable access to the infringing material by disconnecting the computer from the network or in the case where the page/file is on the university’s server or computer that is connected by dial-up modem, by disabling the computer account.  Requests to reconnect a computer to the network or to reinstate an account will be considered by the appropriate university authority.  Requests from students must be submitted to the Dean of Students.   Requests from faculty must be submitted to the Office of Academic Affairs.  In the case of a second offense, the offender may request reconnection or enabling of the computer account only if 3 years have elapsed since the first offense.

Information Relating to Copyrights and Fair Use

The following links provide a full description of copyrights and fair use.

Contains information regarding copyright infringement rights.

A good article published by the University of Virginia, Office of General Cousel that provides an overview of copyright law, Fair Use, intellectual property, and online publishing.

This site provides a collection of links to legal resources on the web.

Contains copyright guidelines from consortium of college media centers

 
A site using interactive software to explain copyright issues for instruction in a non-profit setting. Created by CUNY Baruch.

The U.S. Copyright Office’s web site.  It contains links to sources of general information, federal laws, international law, Federal publications and announcements and other useful sites.

The Stanford University Library site on copyright and fair use.

This site can assist you in obtaining permission to copy someone’s work.

A special note of thanks is given to the University of Virginia and the University of Texas System for the work they have done interpreting the DMCA, explaining the detailed procedures of the law, and sharing with the higher education community information relating to copyright and fair use.  This page has been adapted in part from related materials developed by the Un iv. Va. and  the Un iv. of Texas System.

HEOA Unauthorized File-Sharing Provisions - Compliance Plan

Effective July 1, 2010 colleges and universities are required to comply with the provisions of H. R. 4137, the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) concerning unauthorized file-sharing. HEOA requires that colleges and universities:

• Make an annual disclosure to students describing copyright law and campus policies related to violating copyright law.
• Develop and execute a plan to “effectively combat the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials” on campus. The plan must make “use of one or more technology-based deterrents”.
• Develop and execute a plan that “offers alternatives to illegal downloading” of copyright protected materials.

The ��˾�������� has taken the following measures to comply with the HEOA requirements concerning unauthorized file-sharing.

• The university informs its community of their obligation to respect the copyrights and intellectual property of others. The university gives notice to all students that are residing on campus that they are required to respect the copyrights and intellectual property rights of others. All students, faculty and staff are also provided with a copy of the university’s Standards of Acceptable Use of Computing Facilities, wherein the copying of copyright protected software, files or documents is expressly prohibited.
• The university, in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DCMA), has established procedures to protect copyrights. These procedures are diligently followed. When notified of a copyright infringement, the university duly meets its obligation as a content-neutral Internet service provider under the DMCA to notify the infringing party of the allegation of infringement and secure voluntary take down of the work or disable access.
• The university has established policies and sanctions for copyright infringement.
• The university utilizes firewall, protocol shaping and filtering tools to manage its network. These tools are principally used to protect the network against malicious actions and to assure that adequate bandwidth is available to support the university’s mission centered needs. These tools restrict the bandwidth allocated to certain peer to peer network protocols, which are used to share files, at our major network routing points.
• The university limits the bandwidth that is available to users and takes action to curb the heavy usage that may be associated with file sharing activities.
• The university has developed this web site for the purpose of educating the network community about copyright infringement. Each semester, during orientation, appropriate standards of use are discussed with students. Additionally, an instructional kit for the purpose of educating students about the acceptable usage of computing facilities (including copyright) is made available for faculty.
• The university has developed this web site that offers students practical alternatives to illegal downloading.
• The university monitors and records copyright infringement complaints.
• Beginning in 2012 and periodically thereafter, the university will review copyright infringement complaint data to assess the effectiveness of its measures to deter illegal file sharing. Additionally, the university will periodically review and revise as appropriate the measures described above in light of best practices.